The official word comes just a few weeks after Queen and Rodgers played two sold-out shows at The Meadowlands, N.J., and the Hollywood Bowl on a stop-off along the way to their recent sold out Japanese tour.

Away from the North America concert circuit for more than two decades – a forced retirement caused by the death of lead singer Freddie Mercury – Queen + Paul Rodgers will launch a coast-to-coast tour March 3 at American Airlines Arena in Miami.

The arena tour will closely re-route the band’s ’82 North American trek, playing Washington D.C., New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Chicago, Detroit, Seattle, and Portland, among other U.S. cities, plus Canadian stops in Toronto and Vancouver, where the tour winds up on April 13.

Tickets for the earliest shows go on sale starting December 3 with on-sale dates staggered through December 17.

For the spring 2006 tour, Brian May (guitar & vocals), Roger Taylor (drums & vocals) and Paul Rodgers (vocals, guitar & piano) will be joined by Danny Miranda, ex-Blue Oyster Cult on bass, Jamie Moses, former Brian May band member on second guitar, and Spike Edney, long-time Queen sideman on keyboards.